Imagine having a personal massage therapist at home. Well you can! The best bit? Once you’ve paid a one-off payment of around £15, it’s free forever more!

How is this possible? We’re talking all about foam rollers. Once you’ve tried one, you’ll never look back. It shouldn’t hurt when you do it, you should just feel an intensity in your muscles. If it does hurt, chances are you need to readjust.

Two to three minutes on each muscle group is usually all you need when rolling. Just remember to try and relax as you go as it can be easily forgotten mid-roll!

Roll, Roll, Roll It Out

What happens when you work out hard, is that your muscles tear ever so slightly. Then as they start to heal, they become a little bit stronger. The more you workout, the stronger you get – simple. Just like when you have a massage therapist knead all your knots out, a foam roller does the same thing. It rolls over all your connective tissue and corrects it along the way. You then benefit from having the same feeling as you do when you’ve had a massage. So without further adue, here are the benefits:

Boost Your Energy and Workouts

Getting rid of all the lactic acid build up in your body gives you much better posture when you sit, stand or move. Tate Wellness founder Si, says, “It helps you move more naturally by improving your range of motion. This consequently means that your muscles function much more effectively when you’re exercising.”

Reduce That Dreaded Exercise Pain

It’s the lactic acid that makes you feel like you’re in pain the day after you’ve had a big workout. Never nice! Foam rolling enables all the blood to reach your muscles though and as a result, it pushes out the lactic acid so you can repair quicker and more pain free. Sounds good!

Prevent Injury

If you’re a runner, cyclist or enjoy HIIT sessions in the gym or if you experience pain in your hips or knees then Si explains that you should look to rolling your quad muscles before your workout. You will significantly reduce your risk of any injury by doing so.

What you shouldn’t do!

Whatever you do, you must avoid rolling directly over any bones, joints, neck, and lower back between your hips and rib cage. If you’re injured, you must always seek medical advice in the first instance. Just think of rolling as for muscles only!